Antimicrobial agents such as antibiotics are used to treat patients who have infectious diseases. The widespread and repeated use of these agents has resulted in the adaptation of some infectious organisms to antibiotics making them less effective. It has been shown that patients with antimicrobial-resistant organisms are more likely to have extended hospital stays, thereby increasing healthcare costs, and may be at higher risk to die as a result of an infection. When a preferred antibiotic does not work for treating an infection, often a second- or third-choice drug that may be less effective, more toxic, and/or more expensive may be used, resulting in less effective treatment and higher healthcare costs. In some cases, infectious organisms may become resistant to multiple antimicrobial agents, further complicating treatment.
Hospitals and other healthcare facilities are particularly sensitive to antimicrobial resistance within their facility because close contact between sick patients is common and large quantities of antimicrobial agents are used. Such facilities may track resistance trends of inpatients in the hospital in an effort to better understand and mitigate resistance trends. Outside of the hospital setting, factors such as unnecessary overprescribing of antimicrobials and the addition of antibiotics to agricultural feed may also contribute to antimicrobial resistance.